The sociocultural project Barrios Orquestados has managed to overcome its financial crisis.
Thanks to a fundraising campaign, the project has avoided its disappearance and will continue for another year while waiting to secure a specific line of multi-year funding in the regional budgets of the Government of the Canary Islands, as stated in a press release.
The campaign raised €62,300, which covers the full annual costs of the material and human resources needed to operate one of the orchestras.
Since 2012, the project has provided free, inclusive, and community-based musical training in peripheral neighbourhoods of Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote.
In April, the project made a public appeal due to the “drop or reduction” of some funding.
Additionally, there was the bureaucracy involved in receiving grants, as noted in the statement, which highlights that the project’s staff went “for months” without pay.
They explain that the annual budget required to sustain their activities in the archipelago exceeds €1.2 million, and the project, declared of public utility, began 2025 with a deficit of €325,000.
Given this situation, the Government of the Canary Islands has recently granted an extraordinary aid of €350,000, which is currently being processed.
The director of Barrios Orquestados, José Brito, has emphasised the need for ongoing support from public institutions and the search for new “more stable and multi-year” funding strategies to ensure the project’s long-term viability.
Last May, the Parliament of the Canary Islands unanimously approved a non-legislative proposal supporting the continuation and expansion of Barrios Orquestados.
It urged the regional government to include “a specific line of multi-year funding” in the community’s budgets.
So far, the municipalities that have confirmed their support are Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and San Cristóbal de La Laguna.
They also noted that donations have been offered by various businesses.
Barrios Orquestados performs in the archipelago and has reached theatres and auditoriums in France and Switzerland.
To date, more than 30,000 people have benefited, according to the organisation’s estimates.
At the moment, the project is reporting that they hope to announce two charity concerts, which would open new avenues for funding.
So far, concerts have been confirmed for after the summer at the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium in Gran Canaria and another at the Palace of Fairs and Congresses in Fuerteventura, featuring artists and groups such as Los Gofiones, Efecto Pasillo, Arístides Moreno, Fajardo, and Domingo El Colorao.
